Tag Archives: vegetarian

Yes, that’s right, ORGANIC AVOCADOS 5 FOR $5. We’re sorry to brag, but you can barely get conventional ‘cados at that price! Actually, we’re not going to be humble for a moment, our organic produce can go head-to-head price-wise with a lot of big box competitors, see for yourself on our website. ANYWAY…

Avocados, so good for you! What are some health benefits of avocados? They provide over 20 essential nutrients and lots of them, including folate (beneficial for your heart) potassium (60% more than a banana!) and the “good fat.” What is the good fat? Well, it’s raw, plant-based fat, or monounsaturated fat, which besides being essential for body and brain function, also boosts the amount of nutrition absorbed of other fruits and veggies eaten with it. This good fat has also been proven to lower cholesterol, substantially. Plus, they’re delicious, it’s a win-win!

Now on to the good stuff: recipes. We did one for guacamole back around the Super Bowl, but here’s one which sounds even better: Ridiculously Good Guacamole in Five Minutes from Michael Natkin’s Herbivoracious blog. (Love this site!) But avocados are good for so many other recipes other than guac, here are a few you may enjoy:

Well, here is our shameless PSA to everyone out there attending the Bamboozle and looking for food – STOP BY! First of all, I know that whenever I stay at a hotel, #1 thing I do after checking in is to find the nearest decent market and stock up on bottled water & snacks for the hotel room, sometimes even a take-home meal or a salad. Hotel tap water can sometimes be kind of grody and paying $5 for a minibar/venue bottle is just not going to happen. And often when traveling, the healthier options just aren’t there and you’re stuck eating fast food or loading up on a greasy hotel breakfast buffet of bacon and undercooked scrambled eggs. We’ve got healthy breakfasts, a great 100% organic vegan salad bar, quick grab-n-go sandwiches, fresh organic juices and smoothies, wheatgrass, whatever you might need on your way to a very long day of music and partying on the beach. And speaking of beaches, got sunblock? We have that too.

We’ve been getting requests for the recipes our guest chefs come up with and I keep forgetting to post them! Here’s a great detoxifying raw soup, Abby Cahn-Anton’s Creamy Sea of Green, packed with nutrients and a few dashes of spice for a little kick.

Place all ingredients (except blue green algae) in blender in order listed. Begin blending at low speed for a few moments, then blend on high until desired consistency (1 – 2 minutes). Be careful not to over-blend as that will degrade delicate nutrients. Add optional blue green algae and blend on low for a couple of seconds. For maximum freshness, enjoy within a few hours. Yield 5 cups.

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You can score big on Game Day with healthier options from our crowd-pleasing Touchdown Menu. Stop by this Sunday, Jan. 29 from 11:30 – 1:30 for a taste, we’ll be sampling up a few of our favorites, all made with only the freshest, highest-quality organic ingredients. We also offer custom platters – veggies & hummus, wraps, sandwiches, whatever you want! Stop by or call to place your orders and may the best team win!

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It’s official: Holiday Season 2011 is here. Get ready for the roller coaster that runs now through to New Year’s, right? Running around, shopping, decorating, planning menus, cooking…it’s all good – family, friends and of course, FOOD.

We can certainly help with the food part. This year, we’re doing something a bit crazy – our THANKSGIVING 99 CENT SALE.

We’ve don’t know about you, but we haven’t found prices on organics like these anywhere else. I did see a local big box advertising organic garnet & jewel yams at $1.89/lb and I’ve seen similar prices in conventional produce but these items, organic for 99 cents? (Hrmm, ideas for dishes to bring to Mom’s for Thanksgiving are flowing…)

We found this recipe for Squash, Sweet Potato and Corn Chowder on Veg Kitchen with Nava Atlas. It’s a great starter for Thanksgiving, it’s low in fat, high in nutrients, gluten-free and is 100% vegan too. The rice milk adds a bit of creaminess and the sweet potato and the little bit of puree add the thickness to make this a hearty favorite. (Note: You can really play around with flavors on this dish by subbing out spices, like adding in some bell peppers, tomatoes, chipotle, chili powder and cayenne for a more Southwestern taste.)

Thanksgiving is thought of as pretty much turkey-centric, but it just isn’t the whole truth – what about all the sides? You wouldn’t dream of having turkey without a side of stuffing, mashed potatoes or green beans. And what about desserts? Can’t forget those.

Spend less time cooking this year and order up some dishes from our Holiday 2011 Menu. We’ve got a great selection of vegetarian and vegan sides and of course, pie – even a vegan pumpkin pie. Not sure? Stop in this Sunday, Nov. 13th from 12-2pm when we’ll be sampling foods from the menu so you can taste and decide.

We still have a few organic turkeys left if you haven’t reserved one yet, but vegetarians and vegans, we have you covered too with plenty of turkey alternatives. We’ll have Tofurky, Fresh Tofu’s Organic Tofu Turkey and items from artisan vegan Field Roast Grain Meat Co. If there’s anything special you’d like to order, please call and ask for Grocery and they would be glad to order or reserve for you. (Note: Please call for special orders by Monday, Nov. 15th so we have time to get them for you.)

Here’s our menu, if you can’t stop in just now but want to get your order in, you can download this, fill it out and fax it in to the store of your choice: OCEAN: 732-517-0202 ::or:: SHREWSBURY: 732-842-8648. As always, please call or email if you have any questions.

We’re always on the lookout for great new items to bring into our stores for you. In the past couple of weeks, we’ve got some really exciting new things to tell you about.

Back in July, we attended the Red Bank screening of Forks Over Knives, giving out samples of some of our favorite vegan nibbles. At the stand next to us we met Chef Zoe of RAWbundant and were able to try some of her raw & organic dishes. We were hooked. She has the most amazing raw “cheeses” made with 100% raw organic cashews from Bali, either feta-style or cream cheese-style, original, garlic & herb or with cracked black pepper. They’re dairy, egg, soy, GMO and gluten-free and absolutely delish. Plus she’s local too, right up in Linden, NJ. She’ll be in Ocean sampling on Friday (8/12), you’ve gotta try them!

DIRT? Todd’s Dirt. Yep, we all chuckled at this one too when Owen, our Grocery Manager in the Ocean store brought this new product to us. Owner/inventor Todd tried for years to duplicate a friend’s seasoning recipe, only to stumble upon one he liked even better, thus The Dirt was born. 100% all-natural and allergen/gluten-free, Todd’s Dirt is one of those favorite catch-all seasonings, great on anything from steak to popcorn. We’re experimenting in our kitchens with it, doing a dry rub on tofu steaks and spicy sweet potatoes. Pick some up and let us know what you come up with!

OK, here’s another one we were like “What?” when we got it in. Betty Lou’s Powdered Peanut Butter. 100% organic, 85% less fat than regular peanut butter, no cholesterol, low sodium and only 45 calories per serving, Betty Lou’s Powdered Peanut Better is quickly becoming a favorite for weight watchers, as a post-workout pick-me-up, or a healthy snack for kids

What else….OH! The Candle Cafe Vegan Pastries! I mentioned them the other day on Facebook and they’re almost gone now, but don’t worry, we’ll get more. My personal favorite is the mini chocolate mousse tart with the lemon-poppy mini muffins running a very close second 🙂

Check back with us now and then for more new item updates and remember, if you find an amazing food, drink, beauty product, etc. that you think we simply MUST carry, let us know!

We’d like to wish a big CONGRATULATIONS to customers Nan D. and Ani P. for each winning a $100 gift card in our Midsummer Weekend Sale Raffle! Thank you to everyone who came in, we’ll definitely be doing another sale like this soon.

We are always open and definitely welcome any feedback you have – what would you like to see more of, what would you love to see on sale, what are your favorite products or some you’d like to see us bring in? Let us know.

Ooohhh, speaking of new products, we’ve got something new and amazing coming in next week. About a month ago, I spoke with a very nice lady named Addie about the Better Together Baking Company. She sent us some samples of their organic, Fair Trade brownies and let me tell you – in all my years I have never seen samples of ANY food fly out of here so fast. It was like the word got out on the street. A coworker tried one, raved about it and pretty soon half of our staff was back here asking for a taste. One person came back to thank me for giving him the “best brownie he’s ever had in his entire life.”

Well, decide for yourselves next Friday in our Ocean store – BT Baking will be here sampling out their scrumptious morsels from 11:30-3:30 🙂

How’s your summer been? The weather has been beautiful, the people are great, summer produce is in full swing and we are loving all of it – hope you are too.

In celebration of this amazing summer we’re having, we’ve decided to throw a Midsummer Weekend Sale! This weekend only (Sat. 7/23 & Sun. 7/24), when you bring in this coupon, receive 10% off up to a $100 purchase, then a whopping 20% off any purchase over $100. Added bonus is the raffle: Enter to win a $100 gift card! One card will be given away from each store.

(This sale is only being announced to our email subscribers, here and to the attendees of 2 wonderful events we supported this week, more on those with pictures later.)

Before you start your Saturday or Sunday off this weekend, make sure to print your coupon (coupon is required or you can show it on your smartphone) stop at Dean’s Natural Food Market and enjoy some exclusive savings – don’t forget to drop off your raffle entry with the cashiers. Good luck!